Posted by
East Coast Evangelical on Sunday, November 11, 2007 10:49:44 PM
Have You Thanked A Veteran Lately?
Simple gestures at times mean more than we realize at the
time. Today we spent one minute and forty-five seconds of our church service showing a video clip aimed at
thanking veterans for their time and sacrifice. Then we had them stand for a moment of recognition, applause
and prayer. Together, this gesture
took all of three minutes.
While the cost was minimal, fifteen dollars to download a
video clip, the impact was more than I expected. The applause lingered during our second service and grew in
such a way that it caught me off guard.
Perhaps they were surprised by the number of men and women who stood
up. Perhaps they were glad to
unite around positive recognition without delving into the politics of the
day. Perhaps they were simply
grateful for a chance to express their appreciation. Several people on the way out commented about that
moment.
One comment is forged into my mind hours later. A man told me that he had served in the
military twenty-five years ago.
And in all that time, today was the first time that he had ever been
thanked for answering the call and serving. Hours later, I am still stunned by that comment. I wonder how typical this man’s
experience may be. Could it be
that this simple congregational gesture of thanks has prompted a kind of
healing in this man’s soul?
Later, on this same Veterans Day, a few hundred people
gathered in our little town of Pembroke, MA, to unveil and dedicate a granite
park bench in memory of Pfc. Matthew Bean, who died on May 31, 2007 from a
wound received in Iraq. Patriot
Riders held flags, scouts recited the pledge, while friends and neighbors,
police officers and town officials, church family and veterans all stood in
silence during this dedication. Matthew's father, Dana, spoke a few words at the end. He expressed his appreciation to all who came to remember. He expressed his happiness that Matthew's unit from the Army's 10th Mountain Division has now returned home. For just a few moments, we experienced a sense of unity of purpose that
was greater than all of us.
When these moments occur, no one leaves right away after the assembly
has ended. No one wants to break
the moment.
That granite bench is beautiful as it sits in a public park
in Pembroke. In this midst of this
park where neighbors picnic and where herring run upstream to spawn, Matthew’s
bench joins another that was dedicated in memory of a young Marine from the same
town. These benches create a
place for quiet reflection…on service and sacrifice…on life and loss…on freedom
and the men and women who have paid for it. I will come and sit on this bench. Perhaps I will pray there. Perhaps I will pick the weeds that invade. I will think about the men and women
who never made it home. And I will wonder about those who have come home but have never been thanked.
Thank God that simple gestures still matter. Have you thanked a veteran lately?